City deals announced to allow cities to go for growth

This news article was published under
the 2010 to 2015 Conservative and Liberal Democrat coalition government

Devolution of new powers to England's largest cities in a series of unique deals that will help them invest in growth and create jobs.

Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg and Cities Minister Greg Clark have announced devolution of new powers to England’s largest cities in a series of unique deals that will help them invest in growth, improve local workers’ skills and create jobs, support local businesses, control budgets and improve critical infrastructure.

The cities are:

Birmingham

Bristol

Leeds

Liverpool

Newcastle

Nottingham

Sheffield

Manchester

These largest and most economically important English cities outside of London were invited to set out the powers they need to drive local growth in December last year.

In return, the cities have agreed to put in place stronger, more accountable local leadership and to spend their resources more efficiently. The resulting groundbreaking agreements signal a dramatic shift, freeing cities from Whitehall control.

Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg said:

These groundbreaking deals signal a dramatic power shift, freeing cities from Whitehall control. Everyone in these eight core cities will feel the benefits - from young people looking for jobs, to businesses looking to expand.

Over the coming months, we are transferring more and more power from Whitehall to these cities.

They are the economic powerhouses of England - so it makes sense that the cities decide for themselves how to boost their local economies.

The deals give new freedoms, powers and tools to help the cities go for growth, including:

More power to invest in growth

More freedom to support local businesses

More power over budgets and resources to drive infrastructure development

Powers to deliver the skills training local people and businesses need